Hi Pravoslavnaya!
You didn't offend me either--I'm late in getting back to you, in fact, because I forgot where this "thread" was listed!
There's nothing wrong in having an imagination and ideas. And I don't have a problem with historical fiction in general, as long as it is well-researched and well-written and encourages us to think about our past and how we might improve our future. Even Shakespeare wrote historical fiction, and sometimes his wasn't always that well-researched! But he was trying to communicate basic human truths, and he did so magnificently.
The Imperial Family lived not really that long ago, and much has been documented about their lives, so I think we have a special obligation to represent them carefully and with as much fidelity as possible. Think about the dramatizations of Anne Frank's short life: the authors of such works always have approached her story with great deal of respect and thoughtfulness, knowing that it was not only the story of a young girl whom many still remembered from personal acquaintance, but also that her story involves the understanding of a great evil committed against many, many others just like Anne.
I think when we represent the royal family we have to remember that they--and thousands of others, from all political, social, religious and economic stratas--paid the ultimate price during the Russian Revolution. That isn't to say that being interested in the lives of Nicholas, Alexandra and their children, and taking pleasure in that interest, is "verbotten"! But I do think that rather than improvisational playacting, the concept of building a website and looking into not just the lives of the Grand Duchesses, but also why their lives and the lives of others were upended, and how such disasters might be avoided in the future, is a great and noble project!
